Beckham’s Galaxy stint in Australia postponed

David Beckham’s much-hyped Australian return has been postponed. But New Zealand will not miss out on the England star in December. An LA Galaxy spokesman tonight confirmed their scheduled exhibition clash with A-League team Queensland Roar at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium would not go ahead on December 11.

However, he stressed that finding a new date for the clash was a “priority” for the Galaxy.

But Beckham and the Galaxy will still run out against an Oceania XI on December 6 in Auckland.

The Galaxy bombshell came just one day before tickets were set to go on sale for the Brisbane game that was expected to draw a capacity 52,000-strong crowd.

“We were not in a position to absolutely guarantee David Beckham’s availability for the LA Galaxy game against the Queensland Roar on December 11,” Galaxy’s business operations president Tom Payne said.

“To avoid disappointment for the many fans that were expected to travel to Brisbane from all parts of Australia for this event, it was decided to postpone this game before tickets went on sale to the general public.

“Those fans with tickets as a result of a priority pre-purchase this week will receive a full refund.

“We are very hopeful that we will be able to re-schedule the game in Brisbane in the near future and will make this a priority for our organisation.”

Match agent Lou Sticca had previously assured Australian fans that Beckham and his Galaxy team would play at Brisbane.

Alarms bells were ringing after Beckham’s recently-announced loan deal with Italian giants AC Milan which begins in January.

He is expected to be on loan for just two months with the new MLS season in the United States due to begin at the end of March.

Beckham and the Galaxy were initially expected to arrive in Brisbane on December 7, and take part in promotional activities, including a likely training session at the Gold Coast’s Skilled Park.

Beckham scored one of his signature goals in the Galaxy’s 5-3 loss to Sydney FC in front of more than 80,000 in his last exhibition match Down Under last November.

A Roar spokesman said the A-League club was as frustrated as Australian fans over the decision.

“Queensland Roar sympathises with the many club members and football fans who purchased tickets for the Galaxy fixture with the hopes of seeing a quality showcase at Suncorp Stadium,” he said.

“In this case Queensland Roar was not the promoter of the fixture and as such the decision to postpone the match was out of the club’s control.

“An official position on the potential re-scheduling of the fixture and ticketing will be made after further discussions between the club and the promoter of the match AEG Ogden.”

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